#pay-equity

#pay-equity

Professionals have long been taught a simple formula for career success: work hard, outperform your peers, and bigger paychecks will follow. But this year, employers are planning to reward their star staffers differently; instead of factoring in merit, more companies are considering general pay hikes spread out evenly, dubbed the "peanut butter raises" trend. Around 44% of employers plan to roll out uniform, across-the-board wage bumps in 2026, according to a new Payscale report.

At 23, I walked into BlackRock's New York office fresh out of Wesleyan University, ready to conquer Wall Street. By 28, I had traded my corporate badge for a ring light and a mission to empower women through content creation. Along the way, I learned that the biggest impact doesn't always come from the biggest institutions. The journey began in 2018, when I joined BlackRock's Financial Markets Advisory team. In my role, I advised governments and banks on complex financial issues.

Photo via Getty Images This week (11/13), the New York City Council will hold a hearing on proposed legislation known as the Paraprofessional Respect Check', a historic bill that would provide all New York City public school paraprofessionals with an annual $10,000 payment, outside and in addition to the traditional salary schedule and labor contract. The RESPECT check is necessary because paraprofessionals don't earn enough.

She, like others, was daunted by new laws around pay transparency and the start of salary ranges being posted for open jobs-mandates that, she said, made her nauseous at first. But since ignoring the changes was not an option, she wanted her peers in HR to buck the decades-old trend of silence around salaries and prepare for a time when it would become part of business as usual.

"As the organization grows, we are unionizing across newsrooms and teams to ensure our mission and vision align with employees' realities," the Signal Ohio News Workers Guild wrote in a statement signed by 15 union-eligible staffers. The journalists said their priorities for unionization include "transparent, equitable and sustainable pay," including cost-of-living raises; hiring practices that reflect Signal's "founding ethos of being accountable to our communities"; professional development; and a say in newsroom policies, including the use of artificial intelligence.

Nneka Ogwumike, president of the Women's National Basketball Players Association, intervened to ensure Courtney Williams and Natisha Hiedeman attended a players meeting during the WNBA All-Star Weekend.